Annual International Business Law Institute, International Law Section, Dallas Bar Association A Powerpoint presentation covering the following: Introduction Political Developments Legal Developments Mexican Energy Issues Tax Developments Conclusion
As a part of sweeping corporate governance reforms mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the SEC adopted ethical rules for attorneys who represent public companies and their nonpublic subsidiaries. The SEC rules make it clear that “attorneys can’t get a pass” from participating in corporate wrongdoing and attempt to hold attorneys accountable much like accountants and bankers have been for their roles in corporate financial scandals ...
Common Evidence Problems Discovery for a New Millennium Computer usage now pervades all elements of society. Most businesses and many individuals conduct a significant percentage of communications through electronic media. E-mail, facilitated by the Internet, has become the dominate form of inter-office and intra-office communication. Businesses are also managed in a wide variety of electronic formats, including spreadsheet programs, databases and computer aided design tools ...
First the auditors, then the bankers and now the lawyers. Many have questioned the role of lawyers in recent corporate scandals and expressed the view that lawyers should not be allowed to be bystanders and perhaps even facilitate (whether or not knowingly) corporate wrongdoings ...
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush in July 2002 in response to several corporate financial and disclosure scandals. Section 307 of the Act directs the SEC to “issue rules, in the public interest and for the protection of investors, setting forth minimum standards of professional conduct for attorneys appearing and practicing before the Commission ...
The Department of Labor (“DoL”) has issued final rules that implement the pension blackout provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Act”). These rules require plan administrators of individual account plans to deliver advance notice of blackout periods and will be effective for blackouts which begin on or after January 26, 2003 ...
On January 29, 2003, pursuant to the requirements of Section 307 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the SEC issued a release adopting a new Rule 205 entitled “Standards of Professional Conduct for Attorneys Appearing and Practicing Before the Commission in the Representation of an Issuer” (the “Standards”) ...
25th Annual Conference On Securities Regulation and Business Law Problems, Dallas, Texas 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. Scope of Outline. In the aftermath of the recent failure of Enron and other major companies and the resulting loss of public confidence in the capital markets, the U.S. Congress conducted lengthy investigative hearings to determine the root causes of these problems ...
Legal Duties of Directors and Guidelines for Insulating Them From Liability After Sarbanes-Oxley
Now that the 60-day deadline for filing new legislation without suspension of the rules has passed, for all practical purposes all legislation that will be offered this session has now been filed. Bills that could impact Texas employers generally, are listed by bill number and contain author, the committee the bill has been referred to, and any action that has been taken. House of Representatives H.B ...
A recent U.S. Court of Appeals decision underscores the importance to plan administrators of maintaining proper procedures for the distribution of summary plan descriptions (SPD’s) under ERISA. Each participant in a plan which is subject to ERISA must be furnished an SPD satisfying ERISA’s content requirements within 90 days after he or she becomes a participant ...
As seen in the Houston Business Journal ...
Two Class Certification Denials Reinforce Rule 23 Adequacy Principles, While Exposing the Fiction of “Lead Plaintiff Groups” Introduction A decade ago, William S. Lerach, of Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach, infamously declared, “I have the greatest practice of law in the world. . . . I have no clients ...
The Most Common Legal Problems Entrepreneurs Encounter and How to Solve Them How to Avoid Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of Victory The Most Common Legal Problems Entrepreneurs Encounter and How to Solve Them Rob Kibby Chuck Powell Haynes and Boone, LLP Areas of Concern Areas of Concern • Ownership Ownership • Employees (and Independent Contractors) Employees (and Independent Contractors) • Tax Matters Tax Matters • Securities Law Matters Securities Law Matters • Accounting M
The SEC’s Final Rules regarding Implementation of Standards of Professional Conduct for Attorneys purport to allow attorneys who appear and practice before the Commission to disclose client confidences to the Commission in three situations: (i) To prevent the issuer from committing a material violation that is likely to cause substantial injury to the financial interest or property of the issuer or investors; (ii) To prevent the issuer, in a Commission investigation or administrative proce
As required by Section 403 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) has adopted final rules and form amendments mandating the electronic filing, and website posting by issuers with corporate websites, of beneficial ownership reports filed by officers, directors and principal security holders under Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) ...
Discovery for a New Millennium I. THE CHALLENGES OF ELECTRONIC EVIDENCE Computer usage now pervades all elements of society. Most businesses and many individuals conduct a significant percentage of communications through electronic media. E-mail, facilitated by the Internet, has become the dominate form of inter-office and intra-office communication ...
With the passing of April 14, 2003, large health plans (those with more than $5,000,000 in annual receipts) became subject to the privacy regulations issued under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). However, more HIPAA deadlines loom on the horizon ...
On October 16, 2003, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) requires employer-sponsored group health plans and others to be in compliance with the Transaction and Code Sets (“TCS”) standards for electronic transactions adopted by the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”). The federal government has been warned of potential disruption in the claim submission and payment cycles because the health care industry remains substantially non-compliant ...
On May 28, 2003, the U.S. Department of Labor ("DoL") issued proposed regulations on COBRA continuation coverage notice requirements. The proposed regulations include content standards for each type of required notice and provide sample forms for certain of the required notices. This Alert focuses on the significant changes applicable to single employer health plans. Even though they are only proposed, the regulations are important for a number of reasons ...
On Monday, June 30, 2003, the SEC approved new rules proposed and adopted by the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) and the Nasdaq Stock Market (“Nasdaq”) requiring shareholder approval of equity compensation plans or material amendments to existing equity compensation plans ...
News for Retiree Medical Plans
Authors Karen Williams Altaras Mary Jean Geroulo E. Earl Harcrow Jeffrey P. King Lewis A. Lefko Thomas William Mayo Lisa Schafroth Sooter Related Practice Groups Health Care Prompt payment by managed care organizations is once again a hot topic of debate as revisions of current law and regulations deals with claim submission deadlines, recoupment practices, prompt pay penalties, eligibility verification and underpayments ...
Advanced Personal Injury Law Course 2003
Prompt payment by managed care organizations is once again a hot topic of debate as revisions of current law and regulations deals with claim submission deadlines, recoupment practices, prompt pay penalties, eligibility verification and underpayments. Out-of-network providers scored a legislative victory as Medicaid managed care organizations will have to pay them regular Medicaid rates if use of their services exceeds new benchmarks ...
